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Why Is The New York Times in Australia? The New York Times in Australia? Yes. Here’s Why.
(7 months later)
This FAQ was updated on April 26, 2018. Check out the new illustration from Sam Wallman! This FAQ was updated on November 23, 2018.
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The New York Times opened a new Australia bureau on May 1, 2017. Why? The New York Times is in Australia — we opened a new bureau in Sydney on May 1, 2017.
Being the conversationalists that we are, we figured we’d create a page where we outlined our thinking and shared our progress. Why, and what are we offering readers?
If you have something you’re wondering about that I don’t address here, feel free to email nytaustralia@nytimes.com or bring your inquiry to our subscriber Facebook group. Our project is always evolving (like a start-up) and this page is meant to help explain what we’re up to.
You can also follow what we’re up to by signing up for my weekly newsletter, Australia Letter, and by checking our Australia page for a running tally of our coverage. (Or of course, you could just subscribe; it’s worth it, we promise!) If you have something I don’t address here, feel free to email nytaustralia@nytimes.com or bring your inquiry to our subscriber Facebook group.
You can also follow our efforts by signing up for my weekly newsletter, Australia Letter, and by checking our Australia page for a running tally of our coverage. (Or of course, you could just subscribe; it’s worth it, we promise!)
Now for some questions and answers.Now for some questions and answers.
Why are you here?Why are you here?
The New York Times is expanding globally and Australia has long been seen as a promising place for that because we’ve gradually built up a significant number of digital subscribers in the country. The New York Times is expanding globally and Australia has become a priority for two reasons: because we have a significant number of digital subscribers in the country; and because Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific all offer a rich vein of reporting in a part of the world that is increasingly important.
Journalistically, we also felt that Australia — and its role in the region — offered a rich vein of reporting for us, especially in relation to issues of global importance such as climate change, migration, gender, and the role of China. As we continue to expand our coverage worldwide, we wanted to make sure Australian stories and readers were prioritized. How do you choose what to cover?
I fought to come here for all these reasons — and because it’s a great place to live. We have around a half-dozen journalists roaming Australia and its closest neighbors, and we aim to do many things at once: Cover the news with context; deepen Australia’s understanding of itself and the world; and provide a bit of surprise and delight.
We often prioritize themes that are “borderless” or playing out worldwide, from immigration and climate change to technology, geopolitics, trade, pop culture and gender.
We also try to add something “Times-ian” to all our stories. It could be a global perspective on a local by-election; a robust standard of three anonymous visits for our restaurant critic; or world class photography, say for the Deni Ute Muster.
And of course, we try to help readers live a little (our Australia Holiday Gift Guide is one example), and laugh too… even when that means letting Australians make fun of Americans and the British.
Are you offering a local Australia edition?Are you offering a local Australia edition?
We’re not offering a local edition, but rather the whole New York Times in digital form. A New York Times subscription is a New York Times subscription, no matter where you live. We’re not offering a local edition like what you’ll find with the Guardian or Buzzfeed in part because our readers want and expect a broader mix: They are eager consumers of journalism not just about Australia, but about the world.
To add more journalistic heft and to ensure we understand who we’re serving, we have a small bureau in Sydney (around a half-dozen people) plus contributors in Melbourne and a few other locations. We are constantly experimenting with what kinds of news coverage and feature stories provide the most added value to our regular readers, and draw in new ones. That said, we are always exploring new ways to highlight our local efforts.
We also know you like to read New York Times reporting on Donald J. Trump, our take on Beijing and Silicon Valley, and we know you cherish Modern Love. Great! For example, we recently added an “Australia” tab in The New York Times app for iPhones and iPads. Here’s where to get it. The app lets you move our Australia section up by the list by dragging and dropping it where you want it.
That’s why we round up our most important global, local (and delightful) stories for you every day in the Australian edition of our Morning Briefing. And then, with my Australia Letter, I attempt to add some personal insights from our bureau here, along with New York Times stories you might have missed and local recommendations drawn from our community. Apple News is another good way to find our work. And we recently started partnering with Crikey, to include New York Times stories in their morning newsletter at least once a week.
The mix also includes more opinion coverage from and about Australia. We are always looking for new ways to ensure that our journalism about Australia gets seen by Australians so if you have ideas, email us.
We’re also bringing in New York Times journalists for reporting trips and live subscriber events. What else are you bringing to Australia?
Last year, that included Bret Stephens, one of our Opinion columnists, and Joe Kahn, our managing editor, who was here to deliver the Andrew Olle Media Lecture in October. A lot. To start, we’re also providing more opinion coverage from and about Australia.
This year, our visitors included Francesca Donner, director of our new gender initiative, who was here in March, and Wesley Morris and Jenna Wortham, two of our savviest cultural critics, who will be here in May. Two of our regular contributors may already be familiar to you: Julia Baird, a host of “The Drum,” writes for us about everything from politics to Australian accents; Lisa Pryor, a doctor and author from Sydney, provides thoughtful commentary on an equally wide range of subjects.
All together, we aim to add a global perspective, cover news selectively, and experiment with new experiences of journalism (this illustrated poll is a personal favorite). We’re also bringing in a regular flow of New York Times journalists for reporting trips and live events.
Our ultimate goal: to do stories that reveal Australia to itself and to the world. This year, our visitors included Maureen Dowd (who arrived just in time for the leadership spill in Canberra), Peter Baker, our Chief White House Correspondent, Rukmini Callimachi, our ISIS reporter, and Matthew Anderson, our European Culture Editor.
We have more big plans for 2019.
But who are you writing for?But who are you writing for?
Our audience is curious, eager to be informed — and blurs the line between local and international. We’re writing for people who are curious and eager to be informed about Australia and the world — those who are looking for fresh perspective and rigorous, non-partisan journalism... along with a touch of culture, good taste and fun.
From what we can tell so far, our most loyal readers are “globalizers,” a mix of Australians in Australia (many with experience abroad) plus Australians living in other countries, Americans and other expats in Australia, and those of various backgrounds who have a connection to Australia or who are just curious and eager to understand this part of the world. The audience for our Australia coverage tends to blur the line between local and international. As our publisher recently put it, we are an American institution that is “global first.” As a result, our Australia stories are aimed at a wide readership that includes all Australians in the country, but also Australians treveling or living in other countries.
Are the journalists in the Australia bureau American too? The readership for our Australia stories also includes New York Times readers all over the world, from Americans in Sydney and Santa Monica to Brits, Brazilians and Chinese immigrants in London and Melbourne and Auckland.
I’m American, yes, and so is Diana Oliva Cave, who oversees our video efforts (and happens to be my wife). Everyone else is from Australia or New Zealand. But it’s also worth pointing out that these readers come to us for the full scale and scope of The New York Times report.
• Jacqueline Williams is an investigative reporter originally from Canberra. The Australians we are writing for — and curating for — engage with a wide range of our journalism, from our ambitious series on China, to investigative journalism out of Washington to pop culture profiles written with zest.
• Tacey Rychter, our audience editor, is a proud Melburnian who was traveling in Vietnam when she was hired. The easiest way to see the full package? One way is to sign up for my weekly newsletter, the Australia Letter. Another way is to download the New York Times app for your phone.
• Isabella Kwai grew up in Sydney’s northwest suburbs. I dragged her back from Washington, where she was a fellow at The Atlantic. Are the journalists in the Australia bureau American or Australian?
• Adam Baidawi’s family is from Iraq but he lives in Melbourne. I’m American. Just about everyone else is from Australia or elsewhere in the region, and it’s quite a diverse bunch. That includes some recent additions.
• Besha Rodell finds Australia’s hidden gems in the world of food for us. Her restaurant criticism won awards in Los Angeles, where she lived until returning recently to Melbourne, where she grew up. Here’s the team as of now:
• Vicky Xiuzhong Xu is our intern. She was born in China and is a student at the University of Melbourne. • Jamie Tarabay, a product of Western Sydney, recently joined us after spending more than a decade covering the world for CNN, NPR and other international outlets. She focuses on national security, among other things.
• Isabella Kwai, also from Sydney, covers news and Australian identity, with an emphasis on immigration and undercovered communities.
• Livia Albeck-Ripka is our Melbourne reporter. She’s a former fellow on the New York Times climate desk, who covers science, tech and a whole lot of other stuff.
• Jacqueline Williams is an investigative reporter originally from Canberra, who joined the bureau from The Times’s investigative unit in New York.
• Vicky Xiuzhong Xu is our researcher. She was born in China and recently graduated from the University of Melbourne.
• Clarissa Sebag-Montefiore writes about culture for us, from arts funding to the Sydney Opera House to #MeToo in Australia.
• Charlotte Graham-McLay is a regular contributor (and sometimes comedian) in New Zealand. She’s also a former intern for The New York Times in Hong Kong.• Charlotte Graham-McLay is a regular contributor (and sometimes comedian) in New Zealand. She’s also a former intern for The New York Times in Hong Kong.
• Adam Ferguson, the photographer who spent three months shooting our feature on the outback, is from the hinterlands of rural New South Wales. • Besha Rodell finds Australia’s hidden gems in the world of food for us. Her restaurant criticism won awards in Los Angeles, where she lived until returning recently to Melbourne, where she grew up.
We also have contributors we rely on regularly, and we work closely with editors, developers and business colleagues in Hong Kong and New York. • Tacey Rychter, our audience editor, is a proud Melburnian who was traveling in Vietnam when she was hired. She’s a foodie and a lover of all things culture.
Our regular opinion writers in Australia include Julia Baird, Lisa Pryor and Waleed Aly. • Adam Kershaw, another Melburnian, who previously worked in Hong Kong for The Times, is our General Manager — the director of all things business development. He’s easy to reach by email.
And Adam Kershaw (also a Melburnian, who previously worked in Hong Kong for The Times) is our General Manager — the director of all things business. We also have world-class photographers and contributors we rely on regularly, and we work closely with editors, developers and business colleagues in Hong Kong and New York.
Then why do you report money in U.S. dollars, instead of Australian? Why miles, not kilometers or kilometres? Why French fries, instead of chips?Then why do you report money in U.S. dollars, instead of Australian? Why miles, not kilometers or kilometres? Why French fries, instead of chips?
The New York Times is a U.S.-based publication with a global readership. Articles about Australian topics are also read by people in the United States and around the world, so we follow New York Times style for consistency.The New York Times is a U.S.-based publication with a global readership. Articles about Australian topics are also read by people in the United States and around the world, so we follow New York Times style for consistency.
That said, we’re making an effort to include kilometers and local currency for Australian articles when possible. That said, we’ve made an effort to include kilometers and local currency for Australian articles when possible.
We’ve successfully lobbied for a change to The New York Times style guide to make sure Indigenous and Aboriginal are capitalized when referring to Australia’s First Peoples. And we are working with our technology team on a geo-targeted solution that would seamlessly integrate currency, measurement and date formats that are sensitive to cultural differences around the world.We’ve successfully lobbied for a change to The New York Times style guide to make sure Indigenous and Aboriginal are capitalized when referring to Australia’s First Peoples. And we are working with our technology team on a geo-targeted solution that would seamlessly integrate currency, measurement and date formats that are sensitive to cultural differences around the world.
Are there specific subjects you’re covering?
We’re covering a range of stories, some big (the possible revival of the Great Barrier Reef), some smaller and telling (lawn bowls meets Beyoncé).
We try to prioritize on-the-ground coverage and emphasize stories and themes that speak to global issues playing out in Australia. We aim to stay above the fray here in a very partisan media market. We aim to be bold with visual stories. We aim to listen and connect with our audience in new ways (our Facebook group, for example) and we aim to evolve as we go.
How’s it going?How’s it going?
So far, so good. The Australian audience is growing: Our subscriber base has more than doubled over the past year. Thank you to all who subscribed! (Here’s how to do it if you haven’t already.) So far, so good. Our subscriber base has more than doubled over the past year. Thank you to all who subscribed! (Here’s how to do it if you haven’t already.)
Do you accept pitches or submissions from freelancers?Do you accept pitches or submissions from freelancers?
While we mostly use in-house staff and an established base of freelancers, we do consider pitches from new writers and visual journalists. We’re currently eager for pitches that explore economics and business, and culture — with an eye toward global readers. While we mostly use in-house staff and an established base of freelancers, we do consider pitches from new writers and visual journalists.
Pitches can be sent to auspitches@nytimes.com. Please make sure your pitch includes the following in no more than two paragraphs.Pitches can be sent to auspitches@nytimes.com. Please make sure your pitch includes the following in no more than two paragraphs.
• What is your story idea and what does it reveal about Australia in the context of the world? Why does it matter to a global audience?• What is your story idea and what does it reveal about Australia in the context of the world? Why does it matter to a global audience?
• How will you take the reader through the story? Which characters do you plan to talk to?• How will you take the reader through the story? Which characters do you plan to talk to?
• Why are you the best person to write this story? Have you had previous experience with this topic?• Why are you the best person to write this story? Have you had previous experience with this topic?
Please also send samples of your best work. We appreciate pitches that show evidence of in-depth reporting and sharp analysis.Please also send samples of your best work. We appreciate pitches that show evidence of in-depth reporting and sharp analysis.
Can I work with The New York Times in Australia?Can I work with The New York Times in Australia?
We are hiring actually — we’re looking to add another correspondent to our team. Here’s the job description and how to apply. Check The New York Times job page for listings.
Who do I email if I have a news tip?Who do I email if I have a news tip?
Please email tips to nytaustralia@nytimes.com.Please email tips to nytaustralia@nytimes.com.
Phew. That should do it. Thanks for reading. Thanks for subscribing.Phew. That should do it. Thanks for reading. Thanks for subscribing.